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David Carroll
- Born Rodell Walter Schreier, 15 October 1913, Taylorville, Illinois
- Died 22 March 2008, San Jose, California
Musical director for Mercury from 1951 to the early 1960s. As studio arranger and conductor, Carroll played on numerous Top 40 hits, backing the Crew Cuts on their #1 hit, "Sh-Boom" and Rusty Draper on his "Shifting, Whispering Sands".
Under his own name, he recorded a string of LPs with the "dance" theme, mostly featuring his own compositions. He employed the cream of Chicago's session men on his albums, including percussionists Dick Schory and Bobby Christian, Earl Backus on guitar, and Mike Simpson, who also composed a number of innovative pieces for percussion on Carroll's albums, on reeds. Quincy Jones composed a couple of numbers for Carroll during his stint as a musical director for Mercury, and several cuts on Carroll's later LPs sound suspiciously like Jones' arrangements (which, in turn, could well be Billy Byers or Bobby Scott ghosting for Jones). For some, the covers, featuring bold photos of sexy women in ecstatic poses, are more interesting than the music itself, but Carroll's Percussion Orientale and Percussion in Hi-Fi are worth seeking out.
Among the acts Carroll worked with in his later years with Mercury were the Smothers Brothers, and he eventually left Mercury and toured with them, leading their road show band.
Recordings
- Dance Date with David Carroll, Mercury Wing MGW 12016
- Contrasts, Mercury Wing MGW12146
- Toe Tappers, Mercury MG 20064
- Waltzes, Wine, & Candlelight, Mercury MG 20086
- Waltzes with David Carroll and his Orchestra, Mercury MG 20121
- Shimmering Strings, Mercury MG 20154
- Percussion in Hi-Fi, Mercury MG 20166
- Let's Dance, Mercury SR 60001/MG 20281
- The Feathery Feeling, Mercury MG 20286
- Dreams, Mercury MG 20301
- Dance and Stay Young, Mercury SR 60027/MG 20351
- Repercussion, Mercury MG 20389/SR 60029
- Show Stoppers, Mercury MG 20411/SR 60060
- Let's Dance Again, Mercury SR 60152
- Solo Encores, Mercury MG 20503/SR 60180
- Mexico and 11 other great hits, Mercury SR 60660
- Let's Dance, Dance, Dance, Mercury SR 60649
- Let's Dance to the Movie Themes, Mercury SR 60688
- Let's Dance to Waltz Favorites, Mercury MG 20730
- Today's Top Hits, Mercury SR 60786
- Happy feet, Mercury MG 20846
- Music Makes Me Want to Dance!, Mercury SR 60926/MG 20926
- Golden Oldies for Today's Teens, Mercury SR 60935
- House Party Discotheque with David Carroll, Mercury MG 20962
- Latin Percussion, Mercury PPS 2000
- Percussion Orientale, Mercury PPS 2002
- Percussion Parisienne, Mercury PPS 2008
- All the World Dances, Mercury PPS 6022
- Hey, Listen Baby--Let's Dance, Mainstream S/6095
S p a c e A g e P o p M u s i c
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